This disclosure relates to television advertising.
An advertiser, such as a business entity, can purchase airtime during a television broadcast to air television advertisements. Example television advertisements include commercials that are aired during a program break, transparent overlays that are aired during a program, and text banners that are aired during a program, product placements in a program, etc.
However, viewers often switch channels when an advertisement airs, e.g., many viewers “channel surf” during commercial breaks. Additionally, viewers may change the channel after losing interest in a television program. As a result, viewers do not see all advertisements aired with television programs.
When changing a channel on a digital television device, however, the viewing device, such as a cable set top box or a satellite receiver, produces a blank television output while the viewing device tunes to the new channel. As used herein, a blank television output is a video signal that either results in no programming video signal, or a video signal that results in a “freeze frame” of the last frame of video displayed on the television device. Depending on the viewing device, the duration of the blank television output can be from 1 to 10 seconds. Furthermore, when a viewer causes the viewing device to change to a channel, the viewer is usually paying attention to the television, as the viewer is waiting for the television programming of the channel to appear on the television screen.